After 11 years of commercial success and critical scorn, the Transformers films finally have a spinoff. No one was clamouring for Bumblebee, as reflected in its underwhelming box-office performance, but this is by far the best installment in the series. It’s unfortunate: either audiences weren’t interested in a secondary character as the focus, or they were finally exhausted by the trademark Michael Bay-hem and assumed they’d see more of the same. While Bumblebee does have its fair share of fun action and humour, its strong character work—a strange compliment to pay to a Transformers film—elevates it above the rest.
The film is set in 1987 California and follows Charlie Watson (Hailee Steinfeld), a teenager dealing with her father’s death and mother’s remarriage.
After receiving a 1967 Volkswagen Beetle for her birthday from her Uncle Hank (Len Cariou), she discovers that he is a cybernetic organism named B-157—whom she dubs “Bumblebee”—that has escaped a battle between rival alien factions from his home planet, Cybertron.
As he hides from evil Decepticons and government agents led by Col. Jack Burns (a hilarious John Cena), Bumblebee helps Charlie believe in herself while healing from injuries sustained in battle.
Bumblebee adds charm and emotion to a franchise lacking in both. A level of self-aware humour replaces the tired jokes of previous films. With regards to the performances, Steinfeld is especially adept at making the viewer empathize with Charlie’s feelings of grief and alienation, and Cena embraces the goofiness of his role in a charismatic way. If you’re looking for the same level of action from the main Transformers series, you won’t find it here; although the fight scenes are well done, they don’t overwhelm the entire film.
It’s uncertain what the future of the franchise will be, but if they choose to continue, spinoffs like Bumblebee might be the way to go. Allowing up-and-coming directors—here, Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings)—to tell interesting, stand-alone stories that still fit into the mythology seems like a winning strategy.
It corrects almost all of the popular complaints about the other films, and has lots of fun with its characters, the era—all those ‘80s classics!—and the effects. For anyone looking to trade a few explosions for a much better story, Bumblebee comes highly recommended.
Illustration by: Jasmine Foong
